Hannah opened her eyes and looked around her, momentarily disoriented. Annie slept next to her, her cheek pressed against the wall of the family waiting room. Joshua dozed against his wife’s shoulder. Simon was across from her with his eyes staring straight up at the ceiling. He had a pensive look on his face as if he were considering something of great importance.

Rubbing her eyes and wondering how bad her mascara smears were, she took out her phone and used the camera to see where to rub off the black smudges that remained of her make up from yesterday. She had only one text message from her mother’s neighbor.

Ginny is great. Snuggled with me all night. Praying for Paige.

She took a deep sigh of relief and turned her attention back to Simon.

“Good morning,” she whispered. She didn’t want to wake Annie or Joshua.

He reached a hand out to help her to her feet. Hannah’s tired muscles ached from sitting in one place all night. She was getting old.

“Time for breakfast.” Simon’s lips brushed her skin lightly as he spoke in her ear.

“Oh no, I should wait for my mother,” she replied.

Simon took her hand firmly in his and pulled her gently toward the door. “You need some food.”

Hannah could tell by the look on his face that he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. His insistent tug on her arm was the only thing that kept her moving towards the cafeteria. Handing her a tray they began to move through the line. Eggs, sausage and cereal were only a handful of the choices that were offered, but every morsel looked pale and lifeless. Nausea tore through her and she begged her body to avoid vomiting.

“I’m not that hungry, Simon.” Not hungry was a nice way of phrasing the feeling she had at the moment. There was no way she would be able to choke anything down.

He rolled his eyes at her and shook his head. “Nope, that’s not good enough. You are going to have to eat.”

He filled up a carafe of coffee and grabbed some cream and sugar, two cups and some spoons. Then he dished her up a generous helping of eggs, hash browns, bacon and biscuits. He grabbed the same amount for himself and walked to the cashier. After ringing everything up, he paid. Hannah probably would have objected on any other occasion, but so far her objections hadn’t done much so she just followed him to the table.

“Pray with me.” It was a kind demand. He took her hands in his and smiled at her encouragingly.

She scrunched her eyebrows and looked around. Counting five people sitting around the cafeteria in various states of awareness she realized nobody would notice if they prayed in public. She had never really prayed in front of anyone else, except at church of course. This was an entirely new experience that made her feel vulnerable and self-conscious. Swallowing her pride and fear she squeezed his hands and bowed her head.

Simon’s deep baritone voice quietly but fervently spoke to God. “Father God, I pray that You lift up this wonderful woman and her family. Their trials are hard right now and their hearts are broken. Please heal her heart. And if it be Your will, Father, heal her mother of her illness, that we may take her home. In Jesus’s name, amen.”

Tears fell out of Hannah's eyes as the comfort of the prayer settled over her. This man had just spoken her deepest hopes aloud. She couldn’t look at him. She didn’t want him to see her crying for some reason. Feeling a hand on her chin she allowed Simon to gently raise her face level with his.

“It’s going to be alright.” His eyes held a promise that she clung to. It was hope, and it filled her with the warmth she had been missing.

“I want it to be okay,” Hannah said with a quiet sob.

“It will work out. God has got this.”

He was like an anchor to her, rooting her in the present. Her nausea dissipated as she realized how hungry she really was. Sleeping in a hospital chair hadn’t helped with her stress levels or her appetite. She nibbled on a biscuit and sipped some coffee. The bacon was heavenly and she soon found her plate empty.

“Feel better?” Simon asked, his own plate still half full.

“Much,” she replied.

Before she could object, Simon had cleared the table and was dragging her back to the waiting room. She felt lethargic and only half awake still. At least the nausea was gone.

As they walked, Simon had demurely captured her hand in his and rubbed her skin lightly with his thumb. Fear coursed through her when she entered the family waiting room and didn’t see Annie waiting for her. What had happened to make Annie leave? Was her mother worse?

“Where are they?” she asked aloud. She couldn’t keep the quiver of fear out of her voice as worst case scenarios plagued her mind.

Simon shrugged, “They may have gone to get some breakfast or something. We probably passed them without knowing it. Don’t worry. Let me go check in with a nurse and see how your mum is doing.”

Simon disappeared through the door to the nurses’ station and she saw him speaking to one, with a serious look on his face. Her heart began to race as he came solemnly back to the waiting room. Almost sad.

“What is going on?” Hannah was already sprinting for the door. She could tell by the look on his face that something wasn’t right.

“We have to wait; we can’t go in there. Your mom is having some trouble breathing right now, and they are preparing her for an emergency surgery. They think that her kidneys are failing.”

Her head swirled and darkness closed in from all sides. She felt her legs buckle and a dark dampness encompass her mind. She could feel Simon’s arms catch her before she hit the ground but had no recollection of falling.

“Hannah.” Simon’s voice filtered through a cloud of darkness. “Hannah, wake up.”

When she opened her eyes she couldn’t figure out what she was looking at. The faces in front of her were blurred and uneven. Then she realized there were two men looking at her.

She appeared to be on the floor with Simon kneeling next to her. His blue eyes were full of concern, and his mouth had little creases around the outside. There was another man next to her with a stethoscope pressed against her chest, listening intently.

“She just seems to have fainted,” the man said quietly.

“Are you okay?” Simon asked.

“I’m fine,” Hannah replied, attempting to sit up.

She felt two sets of arms helping her move up onto one of the chairs. A cold glass of water was placed in her hands and a warm blanket draped around her shoulders. She couldn’t stop the tears. Her mother could die. What would she do?

* * *

The doctor looked grim and Simon didn’t know what to do to help prepare Hannah. He knew from speaking to the nurse that some very serious problems surrounded Hannah's mother. He also knew they wouldn’t have a lot of time before a decision would have to be made about her health. The nurses had told him a lot more than he had relayed to Hannah before she fainted.

He felt like it was best that she hear it from the doctor. The surgeon dealt with grieving families on a regular basis, so probably knew how best to approach Hannah.

“I’m Dr. Sebastian. I have been working with your mother’s oncologist and I need to let you know what is going on this morning.” He held out his hand to both Simon and Hannah. “Your mother has some unique circumstances that need to be explained to you.”

“Where is Annie?” Hannah asked. Simon had insisted that she finish the water before she was able to get up or even ask questions.

“Your sister is with your mother at the moment. Paige is awake for the moment, but in a lot of pain. We have her on meds but she insisted that she get to talk to you before we take her in to surgery. The breathing tube was removed last night while you slept, but she took a turn for the worse this morning. She began to have more trouble breathing and after some blood tests, we confirmed that her kidneys were failing.”

A sob broke out of Hannah's lips and she dropped her shoulders, wrapping her arms around her knees and letting her head rest on them. The surgeon patted her shoulder awkwardly and cleared his throat. Simon realized that perhaps the surgeon’s bedside manner was lacking.

“We need to take her in to surgery immediately. But we have something we need to consider. We placed your mother on dialysis, but she needs a transplant. The waiting list is quite long.”

At this, Hannah raised her head and looked at the doctor with a curious look on her face. Simon thought perhaps it was fear.

“We looked up the test results both you and your sister submitted, and you are a match for your mother. If possible, we would like to ask that you donate one of your kidneys to her so that we can proceed with the transplant procedure. Without this surgery, we aren’t really sure how long she will have.”

“Of course,” she answered automatically.

“Please, you really do need to think about this decision before you make it. There is a chance that your mother will not survive the procedure. If she does there is a risk that her body will not accept the new transplant. There is also a risk of infection, which she is highly susceptible to at the moment. She is still battling the infection in her blood. I don’t want to sugar coat it for you. There is a very slim chance of success at this point. There is a risk for you as well. As the donor, you would be susceptible to infection and other risks associated with major surgery. So please take your time and let me know when you have decided. If you decide to proceed, you will need to meet with the hospital’s psychologist and run through some routine tests to ensure you are still healthy enough to donate.”

The color had drained from Hannah’s face and a light vale of perspiration was apparent on her upper lip.

“Let’s go see your mom,” Simon said, breaking her out of her thoughts.

Every step Simon took reminded him that the woman he was falling in love with was in pain. And there was nothing he could do about it.

* * *

Monitors, cables and cords seemed to sprout from every portion of Paige’s body and the bed she was on. Annie and Joshua were sitting next to her bed, talking in quiet voices. Paige had her eyes closed and, from the rhythmic movement of her breathing, she was sound asleep.

Hannah ran over and gave Annie a hug, tears streaming down her face already. “Did you hear about the surgery?” Hannah spoke quietly.

Annie put her arms around her and sniffed. “Yes, I heard. I’m so sorry, Hannah. What are you going to do?”

“I’m giving her a kidney, of course.”

“Hannah, I want her here as much as you do, but she voiced objections about it earlier. She was wide awake and the doctor told her what was going on. She said she didn’t want you to sacrifice yourself for her when she might not make it.” The last part of the sentence was said with a squeak in her voice.

“I don’t care! She’s our mother, Annie. She has sacrificed so much for us over the years. If I even have a shot of helping her, I have to take it. I’m a healthy young adult and there is absolutely no reason to not go through with the surgery.”

Just then, Paige coughed lightly and all eyes turned to her. Hannah and Annie moved closer and each girl grabbed a hand.

“Mommy, how are you feeling?” Hannah said sweetly.

Both girls were smiling, but Simon knew they were just trying to put their mother at ease. He could see the tears they were fighting back as they spoke to their mother.

“Fine,” Paige said with a sleepy voice. She tried to sit up, but couldn’t seem to muster the energy to do more than squirm.

“Mom, Hannah wants to go through with the surgery,” Annie said.

“Oh, my dear. Please don’t worry about me,” she said with a cough. “I have lived such a wonderful life. I don’t want you risking your health, love.”

Hannah was already crying. “You have to let me try. I will regret it forever, if you don’t.”

Paige was quiet for a moment. “I just don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“It won’t. They are good doctors. But you have to let me try and take care of you. You have to. Please don’t take that away from me,” Hannah pleaded.

Paige sighed, looking even more exhausted. “I don’t know that I have a choice. I know you are going to do what you want to. You were always so stubborn.”

All three women laughed, which threw Paige into a coughing fit. A film of sweat appeared on her face and her skin took on a grayish hue.

“We really should let you rest,” Joshua said, with a hint of concern in his voice. Both girls nodded and backed away.

“Wait,” Paige objected, “I know you don’t want to think about this, but please allow me to say something, just in case.”

Simon saw the frozen expressions of fear on the girls’ faces. They were probably running worst case scenarios through their head. They did not, however, object to their mother’s request.

“Annie, you first, dear,” Paige said.

Annie stepped forward and sat on the edge of the bed.

“I want you to know how proud of you I am. I know you have struggled with so many things throughout your life, but you have been so strong. You helped me when things seemed bleak. You are my best friend, sweet girl. I have so much love in my heart for you. I do hope I get to see your children. I want to love on them, so much.” She choked up at this and looked as if she couldn’t finish. Annie kissed her mother’s cheek and stepped back.

“Hannah, get over here, darling,” she said after she had composed herself.

Hannah moved over to her mother’s bed and sat just as Annie had.

“Dear sweet Hannah, you are so special to me, my daughter. You are so loving and so smart. I don’t know how you do all that you do. I am so proud of you, pumpkin. You are amazing. My greatest hope is that you are able to find someone to settle down with, someone to love on you. Because you deserve it. You will be such a wonderful wife and mother.” Her eyes sparkled as she looked over at Simon.

“If I had one wish, it would be to see you with the love of your life. More than that though, I just want you to be happy. You deserve to be happy.” She smiled.

He couldn’t stand it. The pain that her mother was feeling and the longing for her daughter to be happy and whole was too much for him. Just then, a brilliant idea formed in his mind. If Hannah played along, it would make her mother happy. If she didn’t play along, the entire charade would be exposed for what it was. Either way, Simon had to take a chance.

“Paige, I was going to wait until our Thanksgiving dinner, but as it looks like that may be slightly delayed, I want to be able to do this with you here.” This was the last Hail Mary for a dying mother.

Getting down on one knee, Simon grabbed Hannah’s small hand in his and looked deep into the vibrant green of her eyes. “You are the most beautiful woman I have ever met. From the day I met you I knew that you were something special. You have the kindest heart and the most caring personality. Would you do me the honor of being my wife?”

Hannah's mouth dropped open and her eyes popped. Simon could see Paige out of the corner of his eye. There was a soft smile across her weary face.

“Uh…. Umm….. I don’t know what to say,” Hannah said, stumbling over her words. Simon’s smile faltered as he realized that his plan could backfire on him and cause her mother even more upset than before.

She seemed to realize the same thing in that moment, because she glanced over at her dying mother, and then a look of steel entered her eyes as she replied. “Yes, of course I will. Yes.”

Simon let out a sigh of relief and stood up, kissing her ever so gently. Her lips were tight and she gave him a look that only he could see because of her angle to the room. He was in deep trouble.

* * *

After congratulations, the nurses made them leave the room. Hannah grabbed Simon by the arm and pulled him into an empty room a few spaces down from her mother’s.

“You had no right to do that!” Hannah cried. She had tears running down her face and the pain that she felt hit Simon square in the chest.

“It seemed like the best thing to do in the moment,” Simon said. “I didn’t mean to hurt you. He put his hand out to touch her shoulder in a comforting manner, but she shrugged it off.

“No! No, Simon it wasn’t,” Hannah said to him, her voice getting louder with each word. “The best thing to do was to leave it alone. Now my mother will expect me to get married. What am I going to do now?” Her face and neck were flushed and angry tears dripped down her cheeks while she spoke.

“Look, I can’t deal with this right now. I have too much to worry about. You need to go.”

“Hannah, I am so sorry.”

“You just caught me off guard, okay? I mean you said all of those nice things about me and it hurt knowing that you were just performing for my mother.”

“I meant every word I said,” Simon replied sincerely. Once again he reached out to comfort her. He put both arms around her and pulled her into a hug.

“I’m sorry if I made things more difficult for you. I thought that I was doing the right thing. I wanted her to feel happy before the surgery. Give her something to look forward to. I didn’t really think about how it would affect her later. Please forgive me.”

Hannah laid her head on his chest. He could feel her heartbeat against his rib cage and her breathing on his neck.

“You did, you made her happy. That’s the best we can do for now. I’ll deal with it later. After she gets better. You just need to go now.”

“Let me stay. I can help you through all of this. Let me be there for you.”

“Simon, it just hurts too much. I don’t want to pretend anymore. I have so much to worry about. Please just let me do this. I can do this.” She pushed him away, gently. But before she left the room she kissed his cheek.

He had to obey her wishes. He had already caused so much pain for her without even meaning to. He couldn’t stand it if he hurt her anymore. Walking out of the hospital, he lifted up his thoughts in silent prayer to God that she would be okay.

He had gotten Annie’s phone number before he left, so he sent her a quick text before heading home.

She wanted me to go, but I need to know she is okay. Let me know how the surgery goes.